There are now only nine weeks to go, and I am confident that you followed steps one to three last week, you’ve stopped coasting, you’ve set time aside to really focus on your career. You are prioritising your career development. How many of your special and different stories have you developed. ( If you haven’t completed the first three then star there)

Research – understand your market and your options

It is highly unlikely that someone is going to knock on your door with a contract in hand and offer you your dream job. Yet many of my coaching clients were running a reactive job search campaign until we turned it on its head. How often do you look outside of your organisation, read the market news and research industries and competitors? Do you check the job market and follow the career paths of those you respect in your sector?

If you are considering changing sector how many people have you sourced in that industry and asked to have coffee with? I have always held the belief that people are generally willing to help others, if all you are asking for is a few minutes of their time and some of their knowledge – they really have nothing to lose and you have everything to gain.

Action – break it down but keep moving forward

As I outlined in step two it is crucial that you set aside time to make the change, ensuring that you are focusing on the things that make a difference is also crucial. There are a number of weekly tasks that you can schedule so that you are in consistently making progress. Anyone who signs up to, The Seven Steps to Career Consciousness, online programme receives our job search planner which ensures that people can plan and really maximise their return on the job search. You may notice that I also ensure that you schedule in time for the fun things in life. Those who are full time job seekers often feel guilty if they take time out to do the fun things, or take some time for them. The last chapter of my book is called “Be Kind to Your Mind!” for this very reason. All too often the job search can feel a lonely and negative road, you are told you came a close second; someone else had more experience, and even if the feedback is good people can take it as rejection. You have to find a balance to ensure that your resilience remains high.

Practice makes perfect

Many job hunters have to attend several interviews before they secure their ideal role, very few people spend time fully preparing for those interviews. There isn’t an excuse for being under rehearsed. The more effort you put into preparation the more confident you will feel in the interview – when you have completed your job search score card you are able to plan the questions you need to ask the interviewer so you have the full picture of the potential role. Remembering that it is a two way street is crucial.

Testimonials

After engaging the services of Louise it quickly became apparent that Louise knew what she was talking about. I wanted to move away from Operational management which I had been stuck in for some years and move up a level. Lacking in confidence Louise provided me with a step-by-step process which over time changed my thought process completely and made me belief that I could make that next step and as they say the proof is in the pudding just three months later I have made the transition to Operations Director with a Web Design company. Nothing comes easy though and Louise will make you work hard but the results are fantastic so stay with it

The classified advertising sales team at Newsquest had fallen behind in terms of sales techniques, processes, quality control and customer service to meet the needs of the customers in the current climate. Staff were resistant to change and suspicious of new people.
Louise came into to deliver a telesales training programme and was able to quickly build trust with the team without compromising on standards, had a significant impact on quality as well as helping the sales executives identify new opportunities. Her work delivered significant return on investment in her time on the sales floor! Her work is highly recommended.

Louise, helped identify areas in which sales people needed development through coaching. Introduced and helped implement new ideas to drive performance from a telesales team and also enhanced the recruitment process for team members. Louise provides realistic and practical ideas and brought a positive increase to both activity and revenue performance. I would recommend Louise to anyone who is looking for hands on help in developing sales people and increasing performance and recruitment of new telesales people.

As a professional looking for a new approach to my career, I worked closely with Louise and found her to be a great motivator and someone who objectively challenged ideas and plans with a great understanding of all elements of business. Louise understands people and helps establish long term goals to ensure the focus is not just on your current or short term objectives, and changes the thought process around career progression. I am looking forward to working with Louise again and have no hesitation in recommending her.

The Seven Steps in a coaching process wholly owned by Gatewood Consulting Ltd; providing UK and
international career consultancy; CV Writing; Career Coaching & Corporate Outplacement. Delivering
in Leeds; Manchester; London and across the UK with Skype consultancy available for clients in UAE;
Europe; Asia & Australasia